Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Branches & Arches: 601st SDP Post!

Like yesterday's image, here are a couple of familiar structures that I glimpsed a bit differently than they are often photographed. I liked the different effect it gave. These are two of the arches from the Pacific Science Center, originally the United States Science Pavilion at the 1962 Century 21 Exhibition for which the Space Needle was built. They and the entire science pavilion were designed by Seattle native and UW graduate Minoru Yamasaki. He is most well known for designing the twin towers of NYC's World Trade Center. Yamsaki was fascinated with arch designs, incorporating them into the surface design of several building exteriors. These types of structures and design motifs always remind me of "the atomic age," "the space age" and the influence that science had upon architecture at the time, spawning the daring shapes seen in Googie architecture and design. For another view of Yamasaki's arches, click my More Seattle Stuff page.

Born Dec. 1, 1912 in Seattle, Yamasaki put himself through the University of Washington by working summers at salmon canneries in Alaska for 17 cents an hour and graduated in 1939.

He went on to get a Masters from NYU, while working for the firms that designed the Empire State Building and Rockefeller Center. He later joined a firm in Detroit. He married three times,and after his 3ed divorce, remarried his first wife.

Along with the twin towers, he also designed everything from Airports in Saudi Arabia, a Synagogues in Birmingham, AL, and Glenco Ill, the Century Plaza Towers and Hotel in L.A. CA, the old Eastern Terminal for Boston's Logan Airport, and for THREE buildings in Seattle. They are The US Science Pavilion (now the Pacific Science Center) in 1962, the IBM Building at 4th and University in 1964, and the Rainier Tower in 1977(the building kitty-corner to the IBM building with the 11 story pedestal). The IBM Building is very similar is look to the twin towers, as are features of the Rainier Tower.

I am told (but have not been able to substantiate) that the marble staircase found in the IBM building is the largest free standing marble staircase ever carved.